Show Your Logo Joining Efforts to Help Save The Coral Reefs

On May 1st, 2018 the state of Hawaii passed a bill banning the sale of chemically based sunscreens. This law makes Hawaii the first state to have a law restricting dangerous chemicals in sunscreen. Although government officials are taking steps in the right direction – the law does not go into effect until January of 2021. However, the need for us to take action is NOW! There are several harmful chemicals in the majority of sunscreens; the most common being, Oxybenzone and Octinoxate: These active ingredients in sunscreen harm more than protect.  According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), the FDA has not reviewed the toxicity of ingredients in chemical sunscreens. Instead, these chemical ingredients were grandfathered in when the FDA began considering sunscreen safety in 1978. Which means that although these ingredients are considered toxic, they are still allowed in our sunscreens.

Studies have shown that when corals absorb these chemicals, they have a stress response similar to what it would be if surrounding water temperatures got too warm. Scientists now conclude that chemically based sunscreens can induce the same bleaching stress response in coral that rising water temperatures cause. The presence of these chemicals in ocean water allow viruses to grow, putting the coral at high risk for catching an infection that could cause coral bleaching and eventually lead to coral death.  In 2016, the Great Barrier Reef suffered the worst bleaching event on record, with about 30% of the coral dying. At the start of 2017, it was hit again, losing another 20%, leaving about half the coral cover dead (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority).

Show your logo wants to help Save the Coral Reefs!

To show our commitment to this cause, we sent care packages to resorts in Hawaii with our new line of “reef safe” products. We know it is the choice of each individual to purchase reef-safe sunscreen and we want to help make the choice easier by offering plenty of reef-safe options to choose from!